This present invention generally relates to a delivery system for a device to occlude body lumens. The invention is particularly useful for delivering occlusion devices to reproductive lumens, such as a female patient's fallopian tubes or a male patient's vas deferens, to affect contraception and/or sterilization.
Conventional contraceptive strategies generally fall within three categories: physical barriers, drugs, and surgery. While each have certain advantages, they also suffer from various drawbacks. Barriers such as condoms and diaphragms are subject to failure due to breakage, displacement, and misplacement. Drug strategies, such as the pill and Norplant™, which rely on artificially controlling hormone levels, suffer from known and unknown side-effects from prolonged use. Surgical procedures, such as tubal ligation and vasectomy, are very effective, but involve the costs and attendant risks of surgery, and are frequently not reversible.
In recent years, stent-like occlusion devices have been developed that may be inserted into a fallopian tube through a catheter coupled to an occlusion device delivery system. This type of minimally invasive procedure eliminates the risks associated with surgery, and therefore, is much more desirable to many patients. One such example of an occlusion device and corresponding delivery system is described in U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0085844 to Tremulis et al. Once deployed within the fallopian tube, the stent-like occlusion device expands and contacts the inner walls of the tube. Over time, fallopian tube tissue grows into the occlusion device, thereby forming a barrier within the fallopian tube. Tissue growth may be accelerated by incorporating growth hormones into the occlusion device. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, in order for the occlusion device to form a reliable contraceptive barrier, it must be deployed at a specific location within the fallopian tube. Thus, delivery systems that are easy to operate and improve the accuracy of occlusion device deployment within the fallopian tubes are desirable.